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U.S. military personnel stand guard in front of the New Grand Hotel where Gen. Douglas MacArthur stayed circa September 1945 in Yokohama.
JAPAN / History / Perspectives
Sep 1, 2025

How the Allied Occupation changed Japan: A love story

A wartime GI and a Japanese civilian fell in love during the Occupation, embodying the peace built after Japan’s surrender.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, South Korean Foreign Minister Park Jin and Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi pose for a photo during their meeting in Jakarta on Friday.
JAPAN
Jul 15, 2023

U.S., Japan and South Korea condemn North Korean missile launch

The condemnation came after North Korea fired a powerful long-range missile that flew for a record 74 minutes to an altitude of 6,000 kilometers.
Komeito leader Natsuo Yamaguchi waits ahead of a high-level meeting with Chinese Communist Party officials at Beijing's Great Hall of the People in December 2017.
JAPAN
Jul 15, 2023

Japan ruling bloc lawmakers facing hurdles to China visit plans

Trips to China by Komeito leader and senior LDP official both put on ice over Chinese anger at planned release of treated Fukushima water.
JAPAN / Society
Jul 24, 2023

Japan prepares for an evacuation scenario involving residents on remote islands

Commercial airplanes and ships are supposed to be used for an evacuation, but weather and other conditions could make it difficult.
U.S. President Joe Biden, Prime Minister Kishida Fumio and South Korean leader Yoon Suk-yeol greet each other ahead of a trilateral meeting during the Group of Seven summit in Hiroshima on May 21.
JAPAN / Politics
Jul 29, 2023

U.S. announces trilateral summit with Japan and South Korea

The leaders of the three countries will use the summit at the Camp David presidential retreat to expand trilateral cooperation “across the Indo-Pacific and beyond.”
JAPAN / Science & Health
Aug 1, 2023

Japan panel endorses first domestically developed COVID vaccine

The shot is based on the original strain of the coronavirus, making it unlikely that it will be used in Japan or elsewhere.
Tanks containing water from the disabled Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant are seen at the plant in the town of Okuma, Fukushima Prefecture, in March.
JAPAN / Politics
Aug 1, 2023

Japan and China clash in Vienna over Fukushima water plan

China told a meeting for the 2026 Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty review conference that the international community is concerned about the plan.
Four Italian Air Force F-35 fighter jets are lined up next to an Air Self-Defense Force F-15 fighter shortly after arriving at Komatsu Air Base in Ishikawa Prefecture on Friday evening in this image posted to the base's official X social media account.
JAPAN
Aug 4, 2023

Japan and Italy to elevate ties with first joint fighter drills

The drills highlight how Rome and Tokyo are expanding defense and security ties as their strategic interests in the Indo-Pacific converge.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida meets with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, last month.
JAPAN
Aug 12, 2023

Saudi Arabia seeks to join fighter jet project involving Japan

Riyadh’s push to partner in the program is creating strains within the alliance, as the U.K. and Italy are open to the prospect while Japan is resistant.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Aug 13, 2023

Japan Wind Development chief likely to admit bribing lawmaker Akimoto

It was newly found that Akimoto received ¥30 million, separately from the suspected bribe, from around 2019 for applying to the Japan Racing Association.
U.S. President Joe Biden, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and South Korea’s President Yoon Suk-yeol meet during the Group of Seven Summit in Hiroshima on May 21.
JAPAN / Politics
Aug 13, 2023

U.S. and Japan set to announce pact on missile interceptors, report says

The U.S. and Japan earlier this year said they plan to strengthen defense cooperation on growing concern about the challenges posed by China and Russia.
Tourists walk along the road that leads to Kiyomizu Temple in Kyoto on Friday.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Aug 14, 2023

New coronavirus variant EG.5 gains momentum in Japan

The prevalence of EG.5, called Eris by health experts, nearly doubled in July to account for 22% of cases in Tokyo.
South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol delivers a speech during a ceremony marking the 78th anniversary of the end of Japanese colonial rule over the Korean Peninsula in Seoul on Tuesday.
JAPAN / Politics
Aug 15, 2023

South Korea’s Yoon calls Japan a partner ahead of summit with U.S.

Yoon said he sees a summit this week with Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and U.S. President Joe Biden as setting a new milestone of cooperation.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Aug 16, 2023

Man charged in Brazil for allegedly murdering family in Japan

The 34-year-old has been charged over the murder of his wife and child in Osaka, allegedly because he feared divorce.
A Russian IL-38 information-gathering aircraft flies between the Sea of Japan and the East China Sea in a photo taken by the Air Self-Defense Force on Friday.
JAPAN
Aug 18, 2023

Japan scrambles jets amid Russian and Chinese naval patrol

Russian and Chinese navy ships have been jointly patrolling the Pacific Ocean and holding naval exercises in the East China Sea.
U.S. President Joe Biden walks with Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and South Korean leader Yoon Suk-yeol as the three arrive for a joint news conference during a trilateral summit at Camp David, near Thurmont, Maryland, on Friday.
JAPAN / Politics
Aug 19, 2023

Japan, South Korea and U.S. inaugurate a 'new era' of cooperation

The three countries' leaders also announced a plan to create a hotline for coordinating responses to regional challenges and threats.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida meets with Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian in Tokyo on Aug. 7.
JAPAN / Politics
Aug 20, 2023

Leaders of Japan and Iran to meet in September in New York, report says

Kishida and Raisi are also expected to discuss Iran's alleged provision of armed drones to Russia, which has invaded Ukraine.
JAPAN
Aug 23, 2023

China and Hong Kong to toughen import restrictions on Japan foods

Of Japan's exports of agricultural, forestry and fishery products and food items, 36% went to mainland China and Hong Kong in total in 2022.
Japan Tobacco's headquarters in Tokyo
JAPAN / Politics
Aug 27, 2023

Ukraine puts Japan Tobacco unit on list of war supporters

Kyiv's national corruption agency criticized the company for continuing its business activities in Russia and paying a large amount of tax to Moscow.
JAPAN / Society
Aug 29, 2023

Hokkaido hit hard by China's ban on Japan seafood imports

Chinese demand for products like scallops and sea cucumbers provides a crucial source of revenue for the prefecture.
JAPAN / Politics
Aug 31, 2023

Japan announces new fishing industry aid after China ban

The new aid follows a ¥30 billion fund aimed at countering reputational damage. Another ¥50 billion had been earmarked to support the fishing industry.
A sign reading "Suspend the sale of all fish products imported from Japan" is seen in an area of Japanese restaurants in Beijing on Aug. 27.
JAPAN / Politics
Sep 2, 2023

Japan rebuts China's criticism of Fukushima water release

The criticism has included claims that run counter to the view of the International Atomic Energy Agency.
JAPAN / Politics
Sep 5, 2023

Japan OKs additional fisheries aid and ups pressure on China

Support for the industry now tops ¥100 billion, as the government struggles to soothe fears over contaminated water at home and abroad.
JAPAN / Politics
Sep 7, 2023

Japan and Britain confirm close economic security partnership

Japan and Britain adopted a joint statement aimed at strengthening supply chains for critical mineral resources.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Sep 8, 2023

New COVID variant detected in Japan amid wave of infections

While there’s no evidence so far that it causes more severe illness, experts say it may be more capable of infecting people who have been infected before.
A man receives a COVID-19 vaccination  at Aoyama University in Tokyo in August 2021.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Sep 9, 2023

Japan to end free COVID-19 vaccinations in March

From fiscal 2024, the country will provide a COVID-19 shot once a year between to people aged 65 or over who are at high risk of severe symptoms.
New Defense Minister Minoru Kihara says Japan-U.S. joint drills are very important for strengthening the U.S. commitment to the region.
JAPAN / Politics
Sep 17, 2023

Japan and U.S. boosting joint drills with eye on 'actual combat'

The exercises are intended to prepare forces in areas where a contingency could be possible, in view of military activity by China and Russia.
A vial of the Moderna COVID-19 booster vaccine targeting BA.4 and BA.5 omicron subvariants. Japan will roll out an updated version targeting the XBB variant on Wednesday.
JAPAN / Explainer
Sep 19, 2023

Japan to begin COVID vaccine drive targeting XBB subvariant

The free shots will be offered until March next year to prepare residents for an expected uptick in infections during the winter.
U.S. Ambassador to Japan Rahm Emanuel gives a speech at the National Graduate Institute for Policy Studies in Tokyo on Friday.
JAPAN / Politics
Sep 23, 2023

U.S. envoy to Japan slams China in speech and social media post

Rahm Emanuel posted pictures of Chinese boats he said were fishing near Japan despite Beijing's seafood ban over the Fukushima water release.
The Petronas Twin Towers in Kuala Lumpur
JAPAN
Sep 24, 2023

Japan to discuss carbon storage with Malaysia

Japan plans is to store 120 to 240 million tons of carbon dioxide per year underground, which is 10% to 20% of current output.

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Tetsuzo Shiraishi, speaking at The Center of the Tokyo Raids and War Damage, uses a thermos to explain how he experienced the U.S. firebombing of March 1945, when he was just 7 years old.
From ashes to high-rises: A survivor’s account of Tokyo’s postwar past